Thursday, March 11, 2021

Paul the Mystic, Paul the Rabbi: A confusing dichotomy that is detrimental to the mystical message.

 2Co 12:2-4  "I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago—whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows—such a one was caught up to the third heaven.  (3)  And I know such a man—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows—  (4)  how he was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter."


What we know about Paul the Mystic began on his journey to Damascus to persecute the church. That was his first mystical experience. Prior to that from all we know, Paul was simply a trained rabbi that sat at the feet of Gamaliel, a student of the venerated Hillel. It is important however to realize that Paul had two influences throughout his ministry. It is difficult to separate the mystical Paul from the rabbinical Paul. This is the source of most of the confusion surrounding Paul's teaching. Let me give a clear example of what I am writing about. Here are two passages that show both Paul's. The first is the mystical, and the second is the rabbinical. Rom 5:20  "Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more," and Rom 6:1-2  "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?  (2)  Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?" The confusion comes into play when we let the voice of the rabbinical Paul over-ride the mystical Paul. In effect, Romans 6:1-2 nullifies Romans 5:20. At least, in my time in evangelical Christianity most pastors and teachers have had the rabbinical Paul quash the mystic.

This is only important insofar as it either establishes or negates, the love, mercy, and grace of God. My view is that it is ONLY unconditional grace, which produces the love within an individual that will lead to genuine supernatural transformation. In this way, Paul the rabbi negates the important revelation received by Paul the mystic. In reality, it is Paul the mystic that adds clarity to the message of Jesus. Jesus ministered in two ways. He taught what it means to love, and what love actually looks like. He also demonstrated the ethereal supernatural nature of the world by suspending physical laws. In my view, it is very likely that Jesus did preform these supernatural feats because there are many reported in Mark's gospel which is considered to be the first gospel written. I am not of the number that doubts the miracles. The truth of the matter is this. Jesus as the incarnate Logos, creative Word, was able to spiritually take advantage of the fact that the world we occupy is basically composed of energy without corporeal substance. In other words, the one who sustains the world with his powerful word, can change it by his word. 

My point is this. Paul the mystic is important in our understanding and Paul the rabbi is not. As Jesus taught us how to love and act loving, Paul the mystic gave us the supernatural formula for being transformed into love itself. His formula was simply to be transformed by the renewing of the mind. Renewing the mind to what? The mercy and grace of God! See, that is what drives the love train. It is the unconditional, unwavering, unimaginable, and inexhaustible love of God that is the catalyst. New covenant people, new creations, have no business concerning themselves with Paul the rabbi. If it had a positive purpose at all, it was limited to the conditions of the first century and the melding of Jews and Gentiles. I really do not believe it had a purpose beyond Paul's compulsion to hang on to his Judaic beginnings. 

Paul the mystic, the one who was taken up into the third heaven, receive revelation that is crucial to progressing as a follower of Jesus. He discovered that we are seated in heavenly places in Christ. The heavenly places are synonymous with the quantum/ethereal level where all of the material world is created and sustained. He was told that Christ followers were the body of Jesus. That means that Christ followers are the hands, feet, voice, and mind of Jesus here on earth. This is revelation of the mystical union that all disciples should have. He was made aware that the first purpose in creation was redemption. It was to the praise of God's glorious grace and it was not to praise God per se but to be so convinced of God's mercy, love and grace that we could not help but love God! Not just a little bit but really, really, really, love God with ALL our heart, ALL our soul, and ALL our strength! It was to love God so much that it would transform us into love itself. Paul the rabbi was still concerned with rules. Paul the mystic saw a glimpse of the freedom of the manifestation of the sons and daughters of God!

My prayer is that we will all be able to begin to discern the difference between Paul the mystic and Paul the rabbi, and appreciate the revelation he received without the constraint of his rabbinical fears.

Monday, May 4, 2020

Comprehending the Love of God through Christ: The New Humanity Part 14

Eph 3:14-21  For this reason I bow my knees before the Father,  (15)  from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name.  (16)  I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit,  (17)  and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love.  (18)  I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth and length and height and depth,  (19)  and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.  (20)  Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine,  (21)  to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

The above passage from Ephesians has always been one of my favorites. Paul is writing a prayer of his heart for the Ephesian saints. but, this prayer is for all of us and should encourage all of us. After the experience on the Damascus road, Paul spent a lot of time with the Spirit of the Living Christ Jesus, and had so much revealed to him. He said in one place that he was caught up in the third heaven, and heard things that it is not lawful for humans to utter. He got a glimpse of the incomprehensible God of the universe. He makes two main points in this prayer. First is the indescribable scope and intensity of God's love for humanity. Second he eludes to the tremendous power that is at work in the saints because of the indwelling Holy Spirit.

The Apostle John wrote God is Love twice in one chapter. God is perfect love and is perfectly good. So why would one fear love? John also wrote that perfect love casts out all fear as fear is torment and the one who fears has not realized they are loved with perfect love.  And yet, so sadly so many of my dear sisters and brothers fear God. If we go back to the garden story. Our prototypes ran and hid when they discovered they were naked. Of course they had been naked all along, but the awareness of the fact, caused them to fear God and hide from him as he approached them. Ever since then people try to hide from God whenever they become aware of their failure and are reminded of the presence of God. Jesus, the last Adam and the ultimate prototype walked among us as God to convince us that we did not need to hide from God. He explained that God was our Papa. He told us about the absolute relentless love that the Father had for him. Jesus Papa loves his creation in an unfathomable way. As Paul mentioned in his prayer for the saints, it is a love that surpasses knowledge. I know he said the love of Christ. However, Paul also said in another place that in Jesus the Godhead dwells bodily. So the love of Christ is the love of Father/Papa.

Paul prayed that we/they would be able to comprehend the magnitude of this love. But read the last part of the prayer. He mentions that the power of God is at work in us. That power is able to accomplish abundantly far more than we can imagine. What a promise! This is made available as we begin to lean on, trust in, and cling too the indwelling Holy Spirit. It is the power that is in work in us. Peter wrote that we become partakers of the divine nature. I believe that the Holy Spirit is the mind of Christ. Paul said that we should let the same mind that is in Christ Jesus be in us. He did not mean allow it in. It is there as a guarantee of our redemption. He meant that we should begin to acknowledge the mind of Christ within us. That mind will assure us of the love of Papa and will birth the same love in us for our fellow humanity.

That is the character and being of the New Humanity. We understand that Christ indwells us, and it is our hope of glory. When Jesus told the Jews that the kingdom of God was among them, the fact is, that after Pentecost, the kingdom of God was WITHIN them as they were indwelt by the mind of the King. This is such encouraging news. It is the kind of news that will stir our spirits to the good works that Papa designed for us to walk in before anything was created. Rejoice in this prayer and read it often for encouragement.

As we become increasingly aware of this let us allow our minds to align with His mind in us. Don't take these words of Paul as a commandment that you can fail at. Take them as and encouraging focus for your mind. Php 4:8  "Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things."

Sunday, May 3, 2020

Characteristics of the New Humanity; New Humanity Part 12

1Co 13:2-3  "And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.  (3)  If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing."

A question that has been asked through out the centuries by Christians of all ages is "how then shall we live?" It is a very important question. The answer to this question was shown to us by the incarnate life of Jesus. Joh 13:35  "By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." So first and foremost, the characteristic of the New Humanity is love. It is important to point out that it is agape/love, the same love that the Apostle John wrote of when explaining who God is. It is unconditional love that puts the good of the other first. It is patient and kind. It does not envy, is not arrogant or prideful. It is hopeful and faith filled. It loves truth and it is unending.

How is it birthed in the New Humanity? What is the source of this love? The simple answer it is God's grace. All of the previous posts in the New Humanity Series have focused on God's grace, the finished work of the cross of Jesus, and the absolute fact that it was accomplished in God's plan before creation. As I have stated over and over in many different ways on this blog, transformation results from believing the gospel of God's grace. Being justified by the faith of Jesus, being reconciled to God by the faith/faithfulness of Jesus produces real profound peace with God which in turn results in real profound love for God. This peace and love is the source of agape/love in the believer.

Jesus modeled a perfect example of this love in his earthly sojourn. He became the champion of the disenfranchised. Wherever he found a need he met it. He healed the sick and maimed. He fed the hungry masses. Further, and probably most important he taught what loving "agape-style" looked like. It was to love our enemy. It was to do good to them that misuse us. It was to go the extra mile when asked to only go one, in other words, do more than was requested. These were not platitudes. It was how he lived his life. Paul describes Jesus as a human this way. Php 2:5-8 " Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,  (6)  who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited,  (7)  but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form,  (8)  he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross." In other words, he became a servant though he was the King.

The kingdom of Christ is a kingdom where his followers strive to follow his leadership. Not in a compulsive way; not as the commandments of the Old Covenant, but by a transformed mind that is ever growing toward being the very mind of Christ. As the mind of Christ develops in the believer, as she or he moves closer to having the compassion for humanity, especially the poor, the poor in spirit as well as the poor in possessions and wages, the more compelled he or she would be to love in an unselfish, serving way.

This is the importance of the synoptic gospels. The sermon on the mount, the sermon on the plain, Matthew 25:31-46 becomes important in understanding what it means to become a follower of Jesus and to begin to have the mind of Christ. Jesus said let your light shine before humanity so that others may see your good deeds and thereby glorify your Father in heaven. I love the way that Isaiah put it. Isa 58:6-12  "Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke?  (7)  Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin?  (8)  Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly; your vindicator shall go before you, the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.  (9)  Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am. If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil,  (10)  if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday.  (11)  The LORD will guide you continually, and satisfy your needs in parched places, and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters never fail.  (12)  Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in." Look at the promises that accompany this prophecy. There are two things that Isaiah points out. One is to have compassion and provide aid to the less fortunate, and the other is to refrain from religious judgment.

So when Jesus said the words recorded in Matthew 25:31-46, he was pointing out what Isaiah had  written 750 years earlier. Yes, one of the characteristics of the New Humanity is to rebuild the ruins of all the years of greed and oppression. The New Humanity, Jesus followers, will be busy doing these things, and quite frankly, if they did they would not have the time to focus on sin and sin management. They would be so busy doing the good works that God had determined before the foundation of the world for them to do that they would be too exhausted to sin. I say that in jest but in reality there is a lot of truth in it. This is where our resources should be donated. When I say resources I mean both our time and our financial contributions. It would not be to have stained glass windows and salaries for people who are doing our work so we don't have to. I would argue that very little of this work is being done by Curchianity anyway, but too often, the little that is being done is done by those who we have hired to do it.

I realize that there are many doing this, but when you look at world statistics, see how many people name the name of Jesus and attend some kind of church; there is precious little of this being done for there to be so many Christ followers in the world. I believe that the proper understanding of grace and the method that the Holy Spirit uses to transform needs to be widely understood for this work would become a natural outflow of redemption. It needs to be understood that these works are not the reason that God loves us so passionately. He loves us because he loves us and nothing will change that so it is not to gain favor that we will model these characteristics. Rather, it would be what we would/will do as we grow having the mind of Christ.

Until this becomes our characteristics as Christ followers, it is almost like having wasted grace. Oh it is definitely great that we realize we can set aside our shame and fear, and that we can rest in the eternal love of Father and Jesus, but demonstrating this love to the rest of humanity is another important reason for redemption. And, it will definitely bring more praise to God's glorious grace!

Why I believe Universal Reconciliation is a Historical Fact: New Humanity Part 13


I believe in universal reconciliation as a completed work and a historical fact. Yes, I believe that all humanity is reconciled to God by the faithful accomplishment of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is different than ultimate reconciliation in that ultimate reconciliation accepts that all are reconciled at some point in the future, and only some are reconciled now. In fact, let me go so far as to say that I believe that all were reconciled before the foundation of the world, which is before anything was spoken into existence by the powerful loving Word of God. Yes, reconciliation was settled before creation. Redemption was God’s purpose in creation. God created with a single purpose in mind. It was to bring praise to his glorious grace and allow Him to bestow perfect love on his creation. Ultimately it was a plan whereby he could perfectly love his creatures and in turn, they would have the means to genuinely love him back with an intensity nearly unfathomable.

You will no doubt want to say to me, what about choice? What about beings with free will? To that I say each human has a choice to believe it or not. Each human has the choice to walk in this reality while in this earth or not. Each human has the ability to realize that they are image bearers of a loving God and demonstrate this quality in their world. It is the choice of being human on this earth plane. However, in the reality of eternal energy, that reality which quantum physicists are beginning to be able to observe, examine, and can see by repeatable experimentation. They are finding that this ultimate energy field has an awareness and intelligence, and though our understanding is still so primitive, one can only surmise that it is the source of all that is and that it is in fact, the Father, the Word, and the Spirit that holds all things together. The writer of Hebrews said as much. He said that Christ holds all things together by his powerful Word.  Paul told the Athenians that Jesus was the God in whom we live, move and have our being.

This brings me to the first proof of universal reconciliation. I am going to show a fairly large portion of Ephesians chapter one. The Spirit inspired Paul to write about the absolute sovereignty of the triune creator. Eph 1:3-14  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,  (4)  just as he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love.  (5)  He destined us for adoption as his children through Jesus Christ, according to the good pleasure of his will,  (6)  to the praise of his glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.  (7)  In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace  (8)  that he lavished on us. With all wisdom and insight  (9)  he has made known to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth in Christ,  (10)  as a plan for the fullness of time, to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.  (11)  In Christ we have also obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will,  (12)  so that we, who were the first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory.  (13)  In him you also, when you had heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and had believed in him, were marked with the seal of the promised Holy Spirit;  (14)  this is the pledge of our inheritance toward redemption as God's own people, to the praise of his glory.

The phrase, before the foundation of the world explains that it was prior to the Word speaking the world into existence. There are two passages in scripture that predate Genesis chapter one. One is John 1:1-5 and the other is the passage above from Ephesians chapter one. John chapter one predates all other scripture, but Ephesians one is next in order. I am not saying that either John chapter one or Ephesians chapter one was written chronologically before Genesis chapter one. What I am saying is that these two passages describe events that predate creation. And what is most important for my purpose is Ephesians chapter one explains God’s motive for creation. It was redemption. Further, it was to the praise of his glorious grace. So, let me ask a question. What would bring more praise to his glorious grace? The fact that he made it so some could choose to be redeemed or that he planned to redeem his entire creation? Of course, it would be to redeem the entire creation. And, Paul states that exactly in verse 10 by saying ALL things. What can possibly be left out of all things? Absolutely nothing!

Paul goes on to say that God accomplishes all things according to his council and will. So, when Peter tells us that he is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance then he will accomplish that. In the above passage, Paul establishes the absolute sovereignty of God. So, the first proof is established that God had chosen to redeem humanity before he created them, and the purpose was to praise his glorious grace. Now, what could be the greatest praise for his glorious grace? The answer is genuine love for God. In fact, this glorious grace is the key to enabling one to obey the first and greatest commandment. Once one grasps the plan that God put in motion before he created the world, one cannot help but love God with all their heart, with all their might, and with all their soul. This is the only way to enable real love for Father.

Moving on to the next proof; Rom 5:18 Therefore just as one man's trespass led to condemnation for all, so one man's act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all. In Adam all died and in Christ all are made alive. Notice what Paul says in the above passage. Does he say that Christ’s act of righteousness leads to justification and life for some? Does it say that Christ’s act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all those who believe? No, it says that Jesus’ act of righteousness leads to justification and life for ALL. Paul begins Romans five by saying that having been justified by faith one has peace with Father. It is important to point out that it is not that people are justified by their faith. No, Galatians 2:16 explains that all are justified by the faith, faithfulness of Jesus. So once again we are confronted with a sovereign act that God does on behalf of humanity to further redemption and reconciliation. It is important to read Galatians 2:16 in either the King James Version, the NET Version or the YLT Version… but if you read it in any Greek Version you will see that one is justified by Christ’s faith and not their own. So now we see that ALL are justified. Would a sovereign God that is love justify someone that would later choose to go to eternal torture?

So now I come to the third proof; 2Co 5:17-21 So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!  (18)  All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation;  (19)  that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us.  (20)  So we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.  (21)  For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. Here Paul speaks of the ministry of reconciliation. He says that God/Father was in Christ/Jesus reconciling the world to himself. Notice he does not say that God was in Christ reconciling the elect to himself or those who would one day believe to himself. No, Father was in Christ reconciling the entire cosmos to himself. The Greek word translated world in this passage is the kosmos. Again, after looking at the sovereign God in Ephesians chapter one, who planned redemption before the foundation of the world, reconciled the world to himself in Christ. Let us face the facts here. The entire cosmos is reconciled to God and it is very unlikely that he would allow anyone to perish and not partake of redemption and reconciliation.

I can hear it now. What about hell? What about all those who rejected Jesus in his earthly ministry? Well, that would require more words than I have written here but I will say this. All of Jesus references to hell was connected with the upcoming judgment on Jerusalem and the temple. All of the references to Gehenna were references to the imminent judgment that was to come on the Jews from Rome. Romans chapters nine, ten, and eleven, the place where Calvinists get their doctrine of election is parenthetical to explain why the Jews, God’s chosen people, missed out on redemption and why the Gentiles were saved with only a remnant of Jews that escaped the terror of Roman occupation in the first century. Yet, Paul says at the end of Chapter eleven that ALL Israel will be saved. Rom 11:26-35  And so all Israel will be saved; as it is written, "Out of Zion will come the Deliverer; he will banish ungodliness from Jacob."  (27)  "And this is my covenant with them, when I take away their sins."  (28)  As regards the gospel they are enemies of God for your sake; but as regards election they are beloved, for the sake of their ancestors;  (29)  for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.  (30)  Just as you were once disobedient to God but have now received mercy because of their disobedience,  (31)  so they have now been disobedient in order that, by the mercy shown to you, they too may now receive mercy.  (32)  For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that he may be merciful to all.  (33)  O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!  (34)  "For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?"  (35)  "Or who has given a gift to him, to receive a gift in return?" This puts the icing on the proverbial cake in my view. Here is another of Paul’s infamous ALL’S. All have been imprisoned under disobedience so that He can have mercy on some? Oh, that’s not what Paul said, God will have mercy on all.  I like how this passage ends Rom 11:36  For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever. Amen. This takes us back to the idea of the source in quantum mechanics. From Him, through Him and to Him. And guess what He gets the glory that he had purposed before creation.

Saturday, April 25, 2020

Progressive Revelation and the New Humanity: New Humanity Part 11

Joh 16:12-13  "I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.  (13)  When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come."

Was Jesus earthly ministry the ultimate revelation of the kingdom? There are many who say yes. I have met some so called, "red letter" Christians that emphasize Jesus and play down the apostle Paul. I admit that evangelical dogma, especially the dispensationalists, have missed the boat. Especially in not taking the Sermon on the Mount seriously. But what about the revelation that Paul received? What about justification and grace. What about the abolishment of the law? What about the righteousness of God? What about Jesus Christ being the end of the law for righteousness? What about peace with the Father? How exactly does the indwelling Holy Spirit transform? What about continuous progressive revelation? Is the Holy Spirit still declaring things to come? These are all valid questions based on the above verse. One thing is certain, His disciples at the time had not received the complete revelation of the kingdom. In fact, he told them that he still had things to tell them that they could not bear now and this was allegedly within days and hours of his crucifixion. So what were these many things that He had to tell them?

Many liberal theologians, who do not believe in the divinity of Jesus and rather just believe that he was a great prophet and moral teacher have arrived at these conclusions because they think that there are two Christianity's. One of the Jesus of the synoptic gospels and the other of Paul. There is however, two very important witnesses that resolve the apparent chasm as I see it. One is Doctor Luke, who wrote the Gospel of Luke as well as the Acts of the Apostles, and the Apostle John. Luke shows a stark difference between the period of his gospel, and Acts, where on the Day of Pentecost, the beginning fulfillment of the passage from John's gospel was fulfilled. The Gospel of John then begins to allude to justification by faith without using the term and the importance of faith in Jesus.

What was the difference in Luke's writings? It was the role of the Holy Spirit. In Luke's Gospel, it is written that the Holy Spirit came and alighted on Jesus upon his baptism. So then, during Jesus earthly ministry his disciples saw and felt the influence of the Spirit as they were with Him. I believe that the source of the great love they had for Jesus was His great compassion for the disenfranchised and His willingness to stand up to the religious authorities and point out their monumental hypocrisy. They were amazed by the miracles He wrought and were completely taken with the powerful anointing he had. He was the prince of peace, and wherever He went their was peace even in the middle of a storm. The spiritual power he had was so strong that his mere saying I AM HE knocked down a Roman Cohort which is at least 500 soldiers and there were also temple police with them as well. The fact is that his disciples were continuously in the presence of the Holy Spirit when they were with Him. It was a charisma that had it's own powerful attraction. In fact, the Greek word translated anointing is Krisma. When the Holy Spirit arrived on Pentecost the entire dynamic changed. It began to indwell the saints. In the presence of the Spirit there is love, joy and peace and Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians that there is freedom/liberty. It must be noted that at Pentecost and later at Cornelius home it was the preaching of the cross that brought the anointing. Paul says that the preaching of the cross was God's dynamite. It is foolishness to the world but it is the transforming power of God. The word translated power is dunamis, where we get the word dynamite from. So yes, the difference in large part is the Holy Spirit, but how exactly does the indwelling Holy Spirit operate in believers who are striving to be disciples of Jesus? How is the transformation accomplished? And what about the revelation of things they could not bear before the cross event?

First, let's look at the case of Paul. We are all familiar with the story. He was a Pharisee, a Hebrew's Hebrew who was zealous for the Torah beyond most of his contemporaries. He could trace his linage to the Tribe of Benjamin, and he studied at the feet of one of the most important Rabbis of the first century, Gamaliel. He lead a search to rid the world of the blasphemous followers of Jesus, and was the leader no doubt of the stoning of Stephen. We are also familiar with the story of how Jesus Himself met him on the road to Damascus while he was on yet another quest to kill, punish, and raise havoc with Christians. But, it is what happens directly after that encounter that has import in this topic of discussion. Sorry, but here I need to give you a fairly large portion of the New Testament scripture.  Eph 3:1-13  "For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles  (2)  if indeed you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me for you,  (3)  that by revelation the mystery was made known to me, as I wrote before briefly.  (4)  When reading this, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ  (5)  (which was not disclosed to people in former generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit),  (6)  namely, that through the gospel the Gentiles are fellow heirs, fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus.  (7)  I became a servant of this gospel according to the gift of God’s grace that was given to me by the exercise of his power.  (8)  To me – less than the least of all the saints – this grace was given, to proclaim to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ  (9)  and to enlighten everyone about God’s secret plan – the mystery that has been hidden for ages in God who has created all things.  (10)  The purpose of this enlightenment is that through the church the multifaceted wisdom of God should now be disclosed to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly realms.  (11)  This was according to the eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord,  (12)  in whom we have boldness and confident access to God by way of Christ’s faithfulness.  (13)  For this reason I ask you not to lose heart because of what I am suffering for you, which is your glory." Here Paul speaks of mystery. I have underlined and emboldened parts of this long passage because I want to emphasize what I see in it. This will make it easier, for you the reader, to see what I see although no doubt you would see it on your own, but perhaps my emphasis will aid the process.

The first emboldened underlined part of the above passage is "the stewardship of God's grace." In the King James it reads the dispensation of God's grace. The Greek word rendered stewardship here is Î¿Î¹̓κονομία which means according to Strong's (administration (of a household or estate); specifically a (religious) “economy”: - dispensation, stewardship.) Paul is stating that he has had a new economy or stewardship revealed to him. I want to emphasize that I am not a dispensationalist as it is understood in evangelical theology. I would call myself a proponent of New Covenant theology without the Calvinistic trappings so common with the movement. Never the less, I do believe that there was a drastic change after the resurrection.  But, it was still partial with and already/not yet eschatological focus that was awaiting the New Heaven and Earth, or the age to come. Hopefully I will untangled the New Heaven and Earth a little later in this article.

It is safe to conclude that Paul was teaching this mystery that was only revealed to him. In the beginning, he brought this gospel of grace to the Jews as was commanded, "to the Jew first and then to the Gentile." But when the Jews began to try to kill him for this gospel, he was given leave by the Holy Spirit to take it to the Gentiles. Here is where the already/not yet tension comes into play. It appeared for all intents and purposes that God had two competing yet sanctioned programs in the earth. It was the Torah and the Temple, and it was the Christ followers of the New Covenant. Certainly Moses, the Torah and the Mosaic Covenant were given by God. It was in the Torah that one was made familiar with Adam and Abraham and Moses. But Paul, and the other apostles were patiently awaiting the "manifestation of the sons and daughters of God." It was really eye opening for me to read about this "manifestation" in the NLT. Rom 8:19 NLT  "For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are." Of course, they were awaiting the time when Jesus prophecy about the Temple and Jerusalem would be fulfilled and God would by the destruction of the temple place his seal of approval on the Christ followers who were a temple made up of living stones providing a tabernacle for God's Spirit on earth so that He could dwell in them by the Holy Spirit. Until such a time you had the non-believing Jews saying that they were the sons and daughters of God, and likewise, you had the Christ following Jews and Gentiles saying that they were the true followers of God. Interestingly, all of the first century apostle's either were killed or quit writing before the temple's destruction since it was a center point of the final weeks of Jesus teaching, and they would have surely mentioned it had it already happened. 

Here is where I believe that another mystery is being revealed by the Holy Spirit in this age. It is the mystery concerning the New Jerusalem, the New Heaven and Earth and the New Covenant. Could it be that even here in our time the Holy Spirit is still revealing the ramifications of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus? Paul eluded to it in the already/not yet period that he taught in. Gal 4:23-26  "But one, the son by the slave woman, was born by natural descent, while the other, the son by the free woman, was born through the promise.  (24)  These things may be treated as an allegory, for these women represent two covenants. One is from Mount Sinai bearing children for slavery; this is Hagar.  (25)  Now Hagar represents Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children.  (26)  But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother." The mother of all even during the already/not yet period was the New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven, a Spiritual Jerusalem if you will allow. The death, burial and resurrection had inaugurated the New Jerusalem but it was awaiting the manifestation of the real sons and daughters of God when the Temple would be destroyed. We have not had revelation heretofore on the New Jerusalem, and yet, it was prophesied in Isaiah to coincide with the time of the New Covenant. Could it be that the Holy Spirit continues revelation as people advance to be able to bear it? Could the Holy Spirit be using a reaffirming and refreshed understanding of the original gospel of grace revealed to Paul, to further our understanding of the New Jerusalem, and the New Heaven and Earth? This would require a revelation of how the Holy Spirit transformed in the first century.

Here is how I believe the Holy Spirt transforms by the preaching of the cross. It transforms through the proclamation of God's grace in Christ. It transforms by confirming the fact that God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself not counting sin against humanity. It transforms by the further knowledge that God made Jesus, the one who did not even know sin (unbelief) to be made sin for humanity so that therein, the first declaration of God about humanity in Genesis 1:31 would be the accepted standard. You are righteous because I declared it way back then and I have not changed my mind. The Holy Spirit confirms this to us, and it brings instantaneous peace with Father. It ushers in the Sabbath Rest. After all, Jesus said come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. He went on to say that His yoke is easy and His burden is light. The Holy Spirit confirms easy yoke light burden. From this declaration confirmed by the Holy Spirit when one hears the gospel of grace, cause one to love God.

My experience in preaching over the years is as follows. When I would proclaim Jesus Christ crucified and resurrected, and proclaim the benefits entailed in that, there was/is a powerful peace that attends the message that I have always thought of as the "real anointing." It is true charisma that had nothing to do with me or the way I spoke. It changed the entire atmosphere. When the gospel is proclaimed the glory cloud travels up into the atmosphere and brings peace all around. Saints rejoice and praise God for real and begin to have genuine love for God and each other. I believe this is what took place in the first century church and is precisely why the author of Hebrews encouraged the saints to meet often. It was to renew the mind to the mercies of God. The reason, the Holy Spirit used confirmation of the mercies of God to bring about transforming change in the people, and in this setting, the setting of no condemnation, the setting of sabbath rest, the setting of absolute peace with Father sprang a supernatural love that allowed the saints to effortlessly love one another. It became easy to love their enemies, to do good to them that despitefully used them, to go the extra mile, to turn the other cheek, to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, give shelter to the homeless and visit the sick and those in prison. It was a natural out flow of the preaching of grace to give of their substance to those who had needs, and it is the transforming force that the Holy Spirit wishes to create a New Humanity with.

Revelation is on-going, and a community willing to wrestle with fresh revelation is the order of the day.









Thursday, April 23, 2020

What if what we call orthodoxy is the combination of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Strong Delusion of 2Thess 2?


Is it possible that Orthodoxy is in reality the "strong delusion" of 2 Thessalonians chapter two? Likewise, is it possible that Orthodoxy is the combination of the "leaven of the Pharisees" and the strong delusion? Let's begin with the definition of orthodox. According to the dictionary, orthodox is "of a person or their views, especially religious or political ones, conforming to what is generally or traditionally accepted as right or true; established and approved." For contrast the definition of heresy is "a belief or opinion contrary to orthodox, religious doctrine."


For all of us that have ever been called a heretic, stinging and damning as it may sound, it is not really as forceful a put-down as connotation would have one believe. And by the same token, orthodox is not nearly so sacred a position connotatively that one must fear straying from. I mention orthodoxy and heresy because it will not doubt play a role in what I am asking in the title questions. 


In Matthew chapter 16 Jesus warns his disciples to beware or the leaven of the Pharisees. A few verses after the warning he defines their leaven as their doctrine, and in Luke he calls it hypocrisy. Leaven of course in this case is a metaphor for something naturally taking over a substance. In this case, He meant that the doctrine, teaching of the Pharisees was like leaven and once it was introduced it would permeate their doctrine. So then, did this warning of Jesus prevent the leaven of the Pharisees from taking over? I personally think not. I rather believe it was a prophetic warning that indeed this would happen.


Moving on to Acts and the Apostle Paul; you can read this in Act 20:28-32
  "Keep watch over yourselves and over all the flock, of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God that he obtained with the blood of his own Son.  (29)  I know that after I have gone, savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock.  (30)  Some even from your own group will come distorting the truth in order to entice the disciples to follow them.  (31)  Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to warn everyone with tears.  (32)  And now I commend you to God and to the message of his grace, a message that is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all who are sanctified." I have underlined and emphasized some portions of this. Now I ask, is this only to the Ephesians, or is it likely that this will be widespread among all the communities that Paul established? Of course, it only make sense that this is a broader warning that Luke records was given to the Ephesian elders. Paul no doubt is warning about the fulfillment of Jesus prophecy about the leaven of the Pharisees.


Now moving along to Thessalonica. Paul says this; 2Th 2:9-12 
"The coming of the lawless one is apparent in the working of Satan, who uses all power, signs, lying wonders,  (10)  and every kind of wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.  (11)  For this reason God sends them a powerful delusion, leading them to believe what is false,  (12)  so that all who have not believed the truth but took pleasure in unrighteousness will be condemned." I have again underlined and emboldened parts of this passage that I want to draw specific attention to showing all of the passage in it context. What was the truth that they refused to love? More than likely it is the message of God's grace that Paul spoke to the Ephesian elders about.


It becomes likely that Jesus prophecy about the leaven of the Pharisees, Paul's warning to the Ephesian elders, and Paul's additional warning to those is Thessalonica was in fact the same warning to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees. So naturally, the doctrine of the Pharisees is very important. What are some of the distinguishing characteristics of the doctrine of the Pharisees? Well, the one I would mention first is that following the oral law, the Mishna made it so that their followers could live the law blamelessly. Paul mentions that as a Pharisee, with the righteousness that comes from the law he was blameless. Luke explains in chapter one of his gospel that Zechariah the father of John the Baptist was living blameless. Next would be the importance of the Mishna. The Mishna was oral tradition that explained to the Jews what the law actually meant, and provided an explanation of what was law keeping and what was law violation. In other words, it was tradition. It was humanities reasoning about what God wanted. These seem to be the two things that Jesus criticized most in his earthly ministry among the Jewish people.


Why then do I think that orthodoxy is the leaven of the Pharisees and the strong delusion? It can best be identified by a very early writing traced back to Qumran. It is called the "Didache." Didache is the Greek word for teaching or doctrine. The Didache is the written down "correct understanding" of the message of Jesus. It is the compilation of the sermon on the mount, the law and some of James and DOES NOT have the word GRACE in it except on one occasion and it is not then speaking about grace as Paul explained it. Yet Luke records the phrase "word of his grace" twice when referring to the gospel. I will include the two examples which are quite forceful. Act 14:3 
"Therefore they stayed there a long time, speaking boldly in the Lord, who was bearing witness to the word of His grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands." Likewise it is mentioned again in Act's twenty where Paul is warning the elders of Ephesus to not forget to focus on the word of his grace.


Further, when you look at Peter's sermon on the day of Pentecost he mentions the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus but does not rehearse any part of the sermon on the mount. This same Peter is called by God to the home of Cornelius, a God fearing centurion, realizes that the Gentiles too can receive the good news of the kingdom and preaches the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus, and before he has finished the Holy Spirit falls on all in Cornelius house. Peter did not present the sermon on the mount as the gospel. Paul tells the Corinthian believers that the gospel he preached was the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus, it was the preaching of the cross. I have heard some argue that Paul only preached this to the Corinthians long after he had established his ministry and to that I say that he preached it immediately after his conversion and the fact that it was finally written down in a letter to the Corinthians does not in any way show that it was not his gospel from the beginning.


Orthodoxy has been so appealing because it claims to be linked back to the first century church. But is it? The fact is that there was a silence from the Christian community from roughly 70AD forward until 110AD at the earliest. There is strong evidence that the works of John were written prior to 70AD. In my view, the doctrine that came about from the early church fathers did not resemble the doctrine found in the New Testament. This I think is evidence that the leaven of the Pharisees, and the strong delusion of 2 Thessalonians became fulfilled prophecy. 


Because I say that the gospel of grace, explained in detail in John's Gospel, the Acts of the Apostles and in the entirety of the works of Paul, which is at least two thirds, and probably three quarters of the entire New Testament writings, is an integral part of the gospel does not mean that I diminish the sermon on the mount or that I must do so. Loving ones enemies is definitely a part of Christian dogma that is important and should be strived to accomplish. Turning the other cheek, going the extra mile, feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless,, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and prisoners is also an important part of Jesus teaching. The kingdom of God is a non-violent kingdom. All of these things can be true without diminishing the power of the cross.


Finally, I believe that the operation of the gospel of the cross and grace is mostly misunderstood and not often articulated by any. How does the indwelling Holy Spirit transform? I believe it is from the gospel of grace. Once a person is put at peace with Father based on being justified by the faith of Jesus, not their individual faith, but by the faith in Father that Jesus had. After all, Jesus is the representative Last Adam. But we are the first Adam. Adam in Genesis is a metaphor for all of us. Jesus is a metaphor for all of us now that redemption has been accomplished. In us, all humanity is subject to death... in Jesus all humanity has been made alive, at least that is the case if you believe Paul. So then, this justification is the catalyst for real love for Father. Real love for father comes from peace with Father. This real peace begins to well up in joy, and patience, and kindness, and gentleness, and self control. However, to have this work supernaturally one has to be continually reminded of being justified by the faith of Christ and how He accomplished that in his death, burial and resurrection.  





Thursday, April 16, 2020

Who killed Jesus? An atonement theory for the New Humanity: New Humanity Part 10

Eph 2:15 NRSV  "He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one "new humanity" in place of the two, thus making peace,"

I try to keep the cross in mind every day, but this is a time of the year when everyone seems to reflect on its meaning. Therefore, I have been inspired to write the atonement theory that I have settled on. Of course there are several atonement theories to choose from and even more variations of them. I would like to mention three: Penal Substitution, Ransom Theory, and Christus Victor. Here is a ever so brief description of the three. The penal substitution theory is based on the need for God's justice to have punishment for sin and thus Jesus had to die in our place to satisfy God's justice. The ransom theory posits that Adam and Eve gave creation and themselves to Satan in the Garden and Jesus had to pay the ransom to free humanity from its barging with the devil. The Christus Victor theory explains that Jesus entered death and hell and overcame them and Satan when God raised him from the tomb. Of the other theories, I reject the moral example and moral influence theory as they do not adequately deal with the death, burial and resurrection and miss the transaction that took place with the cross event.

So what should the "new humanity" make of these? I think that there is likely a synthesis of two of these three; the penal substitutional and the Christus Victor theory. but let me clarify the penal substitution aspect. I reject the premise that God's justice demanded someone die and that he poured his wrath out on Jesus. This aspect of the atonement did not appease God. It was not God that needed Jesus to die for punishment of sin. It was humanity. The human conscience, Freud called it the superego, develops a sense of guilt as it progresses in human growth in early childhood. Therefore, there is an innate sense of guilt in all of humanity. This guilt promotes a sense of fear, and dread for the unknown aspects of death and beyond. The writer of Hebrews addresses this very matter. Heb 9:14 NRSV  "how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to worship the living God!" Here is the bottom line... Jesus words in Matthew twenty six explain humanities need. Mat 26:28 NRSV "for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." It was not poured out for the Father's benefit. It was shed to cleanse our consciences. In other words, it is humanity that believes that a price must be paid to satisfy humanity missing the mark. In this way, Jesus' own sacrifice of himself puts that problem to rest.

Now for the Christus Victor aspect of the atonement. It actually describes all facets of the atonement because Jesus was victorious over all. What then did the atonement accomplish? The answer is a lot and here is a numerical list: 
  1. It reconciled humanity to the Father. Father, knowing the need of the human conscience provided the Son, his Word, to enter humanity to fulfill this reconciliation, and in this way, the Father too entered humanity, and suffered with Jesus on the cross. The reconciliation brought peace with the Father to humankind because of being justified by the faith/faithfulness of Jesus. Jesus was totally convinced in the Love of the Father and realized that dying so that the Father could raise him from the dead was the only perfect solution.
  2. It overcame death and hell. By hell, I mean Sheol, the grave and not the elaborate hades that would ultimately be crafted into Dante's Inferno. Heb 2:14-15 NRSV  "Since, therefore, the children share flesh and blood, he himself likewise shared the same things, so that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil,  (15)  and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by the fear of death." The defeat of Satan happened on the cross, in the grave, and through the resurrection. 
  3. It instated the New Covenant awaiting the consummation when the Old Covenant system would be destroyed and done away with. Jesus quoted Hosea chapter six when he said that the Jews should go learn what is meant by I desire mercy and not sacrifice and burnt offerings. It was a system born out of an age of inferior understanding that was simply a metaphor for what the New Covenant would establish.
  4. It provided the means for humanity to have the continuous indwelling of the Holy Spirt, the Spirit of Christ. While it is also the Spirit of the Father, its function is to testify of the risen Jesus, the redemption he brought and to be a catalyst for supernatural agape love that results from our awareness of the extreme length that God was willing to go to redeem humanity from the power of sin and death.
  5. It provided justification for all humanity. Rom 5:18 NRSV "Therefore just as one man's trespass led to condemnation for all, so one man's act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all." I laugh at the linguistic gymnastics that many go through within the ranks of evangelical Christianity to prove that Paul did not mean all when all is written. Of course, all does mean all in this case and the atonement achieved justification and life. John in his gospel wrote that in Jesus was life and the life was the light of humanity, but they did not comprehend it.
The atonement reaps two results. One is victory over death and Satan, and the other is reconciliation with the Father from the consequences of acquiring the knowledge of good and evil. The knowledge of good and evil is the source of humanity's ability to judge and likewise the source of humanity's innate guilt. That aspect of the human condition is what demands a penal substitution of sorts. Again, not to satisfy God but to satisfy humanities conscience. Col 2:13-15 NRSV "And when you were dead in trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive together with him, when he forgave us all our trespasses,  (14)  erasing the record that stood against us with its legal demands. He set this aside, nailing it to the cross.  (15)  He disarmed the rulers and authorities and made a public example of them, triumphing over them in it." There you have it, Christ was/is victorious and in that has made humanity victorious as well.

So who killed Jesus? No one. He willingly submitted to death by crucifixion to accomplish all that I have stated above. Who benefited from His death, burial and resurrection? I did, how about you?


Paul the Mystic, Paul the Rabbi: A confusing dichotomy that is detrimental to the mystical message.

 2Co 12:2-4   "I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago—whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not kno...